Redemption
by Silent-Scream84
Summary: Now Presenting: The continuing adventures of Melanie Walker! Having given up her life of crime, Melanie is working hard to maintain a normal life. Fate of course has other plans for her. I fail at titles. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated.
1. Chapter 1

Melanie sighed gently as she stepped out of the back door of Deckard's Kitchen and into the silvery drizzle that was quietly soaking Gotham. She looked down at the small pile of creds she held and wondered for the thousandth time whether the trade she had made was worth it. She was poor and alone, having given up her criminal past and her family in exchange for this, but at least she was no longer ashamed to look at herself in the mirror. She smiled a bit sadly to herself and slowed her walk for a moment to glance at her reflection in the window of a shop she was passing. She jolted to a stop when she saw Ten's reflection there as well as her own, she wondered for a second if she was losing her mind then noticed that the reflection of Ten seemed to be readying herself to throw a punch.

Melanie easily dodged the strike and spun out of the way, tripping the over-extended girl who was attacking her. The girl rather slowly rolled to her feet and pulled a card from a pouch. Melanie looked at her critically, the person wearing the suit wasn't a very good fighter, she'd ascertained that based on the punch she'd thrown and her slow recovery. The impostor threw the card, and missed to the side by a wide margin. Melanie grabbed the razor edged playing card out of the air and glared at the girl, "And just who the hell are you?" 

"I'm part of the Royal Flush gang. Y-You better give me all your money or you're gonna' get hurt," the girl replied, her voice quavering despite trying to sound tough. 

"Sure you are," said Melanie as she took a proper fighting stance. The girl charged at her, fist cocked back to throw a punch. Melanie ducked off to the side to avoid the punch and swung around behind her assailant giving her a light shove which sent her once again to the ground. The girl stood again a bit shakily and renewed her attack. Even through the mask, Melanie could see that the girl was desperate. Easily dodging another clumsily thrown punch, she shoved the girl up against the wall and held her in a hammer lock. "Just give it up would you? You're no match for me in a fight."

The girl didn't say anything in response, but she drew a blade and again rushed at Melanie with a strangled cry. Melanie dodged out of the way and lashed out with a kick which connected with the girl's knee. There was a sickening crack as the joint gave way and a shrill cry from the assailant who then crumpled to the sidewalk, moaning in pain. She started trying to crawl away into a nearby alley and came to a terrified halt as the card she'd thrown earlier flew down and embedded itself into the sidewalk in front of her face.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Melanie, retrieving the card and glaring at the girl's masked face, "I have some questions that need answering and it looks like you just volunteered." Quickly glancing around to make sure the street was still deserted, Melanie struck down hard at the base of the girl's skull, causing her to go limp. She picked up her luckless assailant and quickly carried her back to her apartment, thankful that she hadn't run into anyone on the way.

Melanie quickly stripped off the girl's costume and tied her to a chair in the middle of her small living area. At a loss for what to do next she took a closer look at the girl's costume. She startled a bit when she realized that it was HER old costume that the girl had been wearing. It must have been stolen, she figured, from the police evidence lockup at some point. It looked like the suit's electronics had been disabled though. She pulled the costume inside out to take a look at the circuitry embedded in the tough fabric. It only took her a few minutes to locate where the problem was, but she didn't think she could fix it with what she had on hand. 

She got up suddenly and walked to one of the two doors off of the living area, she hadn't been in Jack's room since he'd been sent back to prison after trying to take over the family business. She steeled herself and opened the door, not sure if she actually expected to find something or if she was just anxious. She waited for a moment, but nothing happened, the room was sparse almost looking as it had never been used. She shrugged to herself, Jack hadn't really spent much time at the apartment. She rifled through the few drawers in the room and quickly found what she was looking for, a small tool kit for electronics repairs. She took the kit and returned to the main room. Her captive still showed no signs of stirring, so she took a seat on the uncomfortable couch and started to work on the suit. 

With the tools she'd found, it didn't take too long to get the costume's rather minimal electronic enhancements repaired. It must have been much simpler, she figured, than the suit that Batman used. Batman; she looked down at the suit lying on her lap and for the first time wondered just why she'd felt compelled to bother with repairing it at all. She didn't want to go back to her old life, she was still sure about that. After thinking for a bit she admitted to herself that while it was probably irrational, it bothered that her family's name was being used by someone else. It bothered her because as long as the Royal Flush Gang existed in some form, she didn't feel like she could completely put that part of her life behind her. 

She started a bit when she heard a noise. Her captive was beginning to stir. The girl hadn't opened her eyes yet, but she was shaking her head as if to clear it. Melanie stood in front of the girl, arms crossed, and waited for her to wake up. It took another few minutes, but the girl eventually opened her eyes and managed to focus on Melanie. The girl in the chair started and jerked in the chair, her sudden movement wrenching her already injured knee. Melanie covered the girl's mouth before she could scream. 

The girl, obviously in pain and very frightened bowed her head and wept. Melanie took her hand away and crouched down to look into the girl's face. "I need you to tell me who you are, and where your friends are hiding. After that I'll bring you to a hospital to get that knee looked at." 

"I...I can't!" the girl sobbed, "They'll kill me if I tell!" Melanie sighed in exasperation. The girl was obviously terrified, and based on her behavior last night she didn't know the first thing about fighting or stealing. She took a moment to more closely examine the girl's appearance, she was about Melanie's size, but not nearly as muscular, with pale red hair and grey eyes. Her skin was smooth and her nails showed signs of a recent manicure. The pendant on the leather choker she had on looked very expensive, and the underwear she'd had on under the costume, while bedragled, were all expensive designer labels. 

"Let me guess, someone's taken your parents or your grandparents or your siblings or your friends hostage and wants you to steal for them in return for the safe return of your loved ones. Is that it?" The girl shook her head, no. Melanie carefully watched her eyes and decided she was being truthful. Her eyes had gotten a bit wild when she'd mentioned the word hostage though, "Or could it be that you're the hostage?"

The girl's eyes went wide and she shook her head vehemently, "N-no! I..." she was cut off abruptly by the crackle of electricity. Her back arched and her body spasmed. Melanie jumped back in surprise. The electricity subsided after only a few seconds and Melanie quickly reached to check the girl's pulse. She was still alive, but once again unconscious. Melanie examined the girl again for signs of the source of the shock and noticed a small wisp of steam coming from under the choker. A closer examination revealed a complicated mass of wiring just below the surface of the collar and what looked like a small nerve graft cable running up from the collar into the nape of the girl's neck under her hair. She reached once again for the small tool kit she'd retrieved from Jack's room and set to work.

Three hours later Melanie pulled off the loupe she had been using and allowed herself a triumphant smile. The collar now lay on Melanie's bed stand, its power source removed. It had been a nasty piece of work, and Melanie felt proud that she'd managed to remove it, putting the skills she had learned to bypass security systems to good use. It looked like the collar had been designed to sever the girl's head with a small explosive in the event someone tried to forcibly remove it. The small cellular receiver told her that it could likely be remotely detonated as well. The girl, now lying on the bed, had sustained minor burns under the collar where it had shocked her and Melanie had dressed the wound as best she could. She had also wrapped an ice pack around the girl's now swollen knee.

Melanie yawned and stretched while she watched over the girl lying peacefully in her room. She was exhausted, but she felt a satisfaction knowing that she'd managed to put the skills she'd learned during her criminal career to good use. She wondered briefly if this sort of feeling was what kept Batman going. Her last thought before she let sleep take her was that she was thankful she didn't have work the coming evening.


	2. Chapter 2

Melanie awoke to the sound of muttered curses. It took her a moment to remember why there would be someone else in her apartment with her, and why she'd fallen asleep sitting in a chair rather than in her bed. She opened her eyes to find her red haired guest struggling to get out of the bed. She stood quickly and ducked under the girl's arm to help support her from the side. "Do you need to use the bathroom?" the girl flushed a bit and nodded. "Alright, I'll help you walk. It's right around the corner."

Melanie helped the girl into the bathroom until the point where she could grab onto the counter to maneuver on her own. "I'll be just outside if you need help," Melanie said as she walked out and shut the door behind her. Leaning up against the wall, she considered her next move. Obviously she needed to get the girl to a hospital where she could get her leg treated and get in touch with her family. She weighed her options for a moment before realizing that she didn't know enough about the situation to make a good decision. The door to the bathroom opened, interrupting Melanie's mental berating of herself.

The two young women stood in the small corridor in awkward silence for a moment, neither sure of what to say to the other. Melanie took a deep breath, "Okay, I'm sorry, I'm not very good at this. Umm... Why don't we start by finding something clean for you to change into and maybe figure out something to eat. Does that sound okay to you?" The girl nodded her assent and Melanie helped guide her back into the small bedroom. She helped her sit on the edge of the bed, then started rummaging through her small dresser, trying to find something likely to fit the girl. "My name's Melanie, by the way. What's yours?" she asked as she pulled a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt from one of the drawers. 

The girl shifted uncomfortably for a moment, considering whether she should tell this person anything before noticing the disassembled collar, surrounded by small tools sitting on the night stand. That, she reasoned, along with the treatment she was presently getting was probably enough to be able to trust this girl, now tossing articles of clothing to the floor from her dresser, with her name at least. "My name is Moira," she said, her voice barely reaching over the shuffling of flying fabric. 

Melanie stopped and turned to look back over her shoulder, "I'm sorry, did you say something?" 

"My-my name is Moira." 

Melanie, having finally found what she was looking for after depopulating most of the drawers in the room, returned to Moira's side with the articles of clothing she'd found and dropped the small stack next to her on the bed. "Moira..." she paused momentarily as something finally clicked together in her head, "Moira Kane. You're Moira Kane aren't you?" Melanie barely noted the girl's nod to the affirmative as her mind started racing. The Kanes were one of the most affluent families in Gotham and had been for generations. What parts of the city weren't owned by Wayne-Powers were owned by the Kanes. 

Even in the most favorable circumstances this would lead to her getting far more attention than she wanted. The case of the missing Kane heiress had been all over the news for the past few days. In the worst case she could be sent to prison if Moira decided that she was Melanie's captive rather than her guest. There were no easy ways out of this. Moira would know where she lived and what she looked like, so there was no real use in trying to send her off to the hospital in a taxi. She also didn't want to risk Moira being kidnapped again en route. Melanie groaned, it looked like the best she would be able to manage at the moment was to make sure that her guest saw her as a rescuer rather than another captor. 

Moira, noticing Melanie's sudden agitation asked, "Is something the matter? If my family has done you any injustice in the past..." she was cut off when Melanie pressed her finger over her lips. 

"No, it's nothing like that," said Melanie, shaking her head gently. "It's just that...you...your fame makes this more complicated." She paused a moment before moving on, "Why don't you get changed and I'll go see about fixing us something for breakfast, alright?" She turned and began to walk out but stopped suddenly when she felt Moira grab the back of the loose shirt she was wearing. 

"You're not going to-to turn me back over to those people are you?" 

Melanie turned and crouched to bring her to Moira's eye level. Resting her hand on Moira's shoulder she said, "I will see that you get safely back to your family. I promise." Moira's face seemed to lose some of its tension, "We'll talk more in a few minutes, just give a yell when you're changed." Melanie walked out of the room and shut the door. What had possessed her to make a promise like that? She was worried about the girl's safety, but she thought she'd already decided to stay as uninvolved as she could. 

Melanie continued to mull over her heart's betrayal of her brain while she prepared an omelet using the remnants of various meals she'd taken from the restaurant. She was quick in the kitchen owing to the months of practice she'd now had, and finished cooking just moments before Moira called her through the door. Melanie sighed, her internal conflict having yet to reach a conclusion, and went to help Moira into the Kitchen. Moira attacked the omelet voraciously the moment a plate was laid in front of her, pausing only to drink from her glass of juice. 

Melanie watched as she attacked her own breakfast, though less enthusiastically than her guest. "So," she said as Moira's pace started to slow, "can you tell me how you were abducted and who your captors were?" 

Moira took a swallow of juice before responding. "I don't really know who they were, they were careful not to let me see any of their faces. They were running some type of gambling business, betting on which ones of us would make it back alive every morning. They took me while I was on the way home from school. There was an explosion...and the car flipped I think," she was holding her head in her hands, her eyes closed as she tried to remember. "Everything happened so quickly, I...oh no, Melissa and Jenny, I think they...they..." 

"Who are Melissa and Jenny?" 

"My bodyguards. I think...I remember Jenny pushing me down and falling on top of me. Melissa was covered in blood. So much blood..." her voice trailed off and she began to cry once again. After a brief moment of indecision, Melanie stood and walked over to embrace the sobbing, shuddering girl. 

"Shhh, it's alright now," said Melanie in as soothing a voice as she could manage. "You're safe now. In a few hours you'll be back with your family and everything will be alright," *and hopefully I won't be under arrest for getting involved in this mess* she added mentally. Melanie found that she genuinely felt sorry for the girl, having been immersed in a world of violence and death since her youth she remembered how shaken she had been after seeing someone die up close the first time, and Moira hadn't had a hard past to prepare her for that type of experience like Melanie had. She continued to comfort the girl until the racking sobs began to subside into sniffles. 

"So, are you going to be okay for the trip to the hospital?" 

"Yes, I think I'll be alright now." 

"Alright, just let me get changed and we'll get going." Melanie walked quickly back into her room and closed the door. She pulled open the bottom drawer in her nightstand and retrieved her old costume. She considered for a moment before changing into the costume and pulling on a long pair of jeans and a sweatshirt to cover it. She left the mask in the drawer and stared at it for a moment before kicking it shut and returning to Moira. She helped the injured girl to her feet and guided her out the door, hoping she wouldn't run into any of her neighbors in the halls. 

After a lengthy struggle with the stairs which had ended in Melanie princess carrying Moira down two and a half stories while the red head apologized continually, the two managed to reach the street outside. Melanie helped Moira to lean up against a lamp post while she hailed a cab. The ride to Gotham General was uneventful and took almost an hour due to the roundabout route the driver had taken to avoid rush hour traffic and both young women were feeling a bit twitchy by the time they arrived. Melanie paid the cab, completely depleting her remaining cash in the process. 

Melanie had just started to help Moira walk towards the entrance to the ER, a mere seven or eight meters away when Moira tripped, just a few steps in, pulling Melanie down with her. A beam of light passed just inches above them as they toppled, traveling through the now empty space that their heads had occupied just moments earlier and striking a nearby ambulance, scorching the paint. Melanie pushed Moira back down as she attempted to get to her feet and quickly pulled her to cover, behind the ambulance. There was more gunfire now and Melanie peeked around the corner of the ambulance to assess their enemies. There were three men, dressed in nondescript clothing and armed with police issue laser carbines. Sirens had started to sound in the distance. 

Melanie muttered a curse as she reached into her purse and drew out a small pouch from which she pulled a number of what looked like normal playing cards. She went to take another glance around the back of the vehicle when she heard Moira scream. She spun quickly, spotted another man with a drawn gun approaching the frightened girl, and moved quickly to interpose herself between them. Before the man could fire, she reached out and wrenched his pistol off to the side, trapping his finger in the guard and driving him to the floor. She slammed her elbow against the back of his head as he hit the ground, leaving him sprawled, unconcious on the asphalt. 

Ducking instinctively as the front compartment windows of the ambulance blew out under a hail of gunfire, Melanie quickly made her way back to the rear of the heavily damaged vehicle and took another quick glance around the back. Two of the men were now exchanging fire with a police officer who was now ducking behind a planter near the entrance, the other was covering the ambulance and snapped off a sloppy shot when he saw Melanie's head clear the corner. 

Melanie turned to Moira, and gave her the gun she had taken off of their assailant a moment earlier. "Stay right here, I'll be back for you in a minute," she said, leaving no room for comment as she turned and quickly dashed across the space between the Ambulance and the next vehicle back. She flung two of her cards at the man covering the ambulance as she ran and grinned when she heard the crackle of electricity followed by a dull thud as she ducked behind the old car that had been parked behind the emergency vehicle. She winced as her smile brought her attention to the laser burn she'd just acquired on her right cheek, a very near miss from the shooter. The sound of sirens was louder now, the police were probably a bit more than a minute away. 

One of the two remaining gunmen turned to check on their fallen comrade and noticed Melanie peeking out from behind the car. He laced the car with laser fire for a moment before his gun's charge finally gave out. He drew a handgun from the waistband of his pants just as Melanie stood and threw her final card. The card hit the gun and wreathed it in arcing electricity for a moment. Melanie took the opportunity to dash back toward the ambulance as the shock should have disabled the electronics in the laser pistol. The man grinned, pointed the firearm at her and pulled the trigger. A deafening bang sounded as the gun discharged and Melanie felt a searing pain in her side as she ducked behind the vehicle and landed sloppily next to the red headed girl. 

The pain was blinding, and it was spreading along with the dull feeling of warmth radiating out from the wound. Melanie tried to get to her feet, but her legs suddenly wouldn't obey her. She struggled to sit up to lean against the side of the emergency vehicle, and almost slipped in the rapidly expanding puddle of her own blood. It was hard to breathe, and the taste of iron filled her mouth. She tried to catch her breath, but half way she coughed, filling the air in front of her with a fine crimson mist. Willing herself not to panic she blinked the tears from her eyes and turned toward where she was sure the gunman would come around the back of the ambulance to finish them off. 

Her mind reeling from shock, trying desperately to watch for the shadow on the ground that would foretell the gunman's approach, she was completely taken by surprise when she heard Moira scream from behind her. Moira was holding the gun she'd been given, pointing it at the man with the pistol. Her hands were trembling as she tried to force herself to pull the trigger, the man was grinning as he slowly tightened his own finger, taking pleasure in the fear of his victim. With a cry, Melanie forced herself to stand and threw herself onto Moira, pushing her down as the man fired.

Suddenly she was lying prone on the ground, her entire being seemed to be made of agony. She could hear a man's voice saying something behind her and a woman's scream, the air suddenly filled with light and noise. Suddenly there was a female voice whispering something in her ear, she tried to pay attention to what the words were, and she was still trying to figure it out as the world turned to black around her.


End file.
